We call these “dishpan cookies” at my house because if you make the whole recipe, you need a dishpan to mix all the ingredients (or a very large bowl). These cookies traveled with my kids on many team trips and were always “winners.”–Pat Sinclair

We Interrupt This Recipe...

Put down that wooden spoon. The New York Times just reported that this Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVI will introduce yet another animated M&Ms character: Ms. Brown. The sixth member of the melts-in-your-hands-not-in-your-mouth cast, Brown will join Yellow, Orange, Red, Green, and Blue. Look for her during the first quarter commericals. (Are we the only ones who’re a little giddy about this?!)

Directions

2. Mix the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in really, really, really large bowl or a dishpan.

3. Beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in bowl of a mixer on medium-high speed until creamy, scraping down sides of bowl once or twice. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix well.

4. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat just until a dough forms. Scrape the dough back into the very large bowl. Dump in the oatmeal, corn flakes, and M&Ms or chips and stir with a spoon until combined.

For jumbo cookies

5. Using a 1/4 cup measure or ice cream scoop, drop the dough onto the baking sheets, making 6 cookies on each cookie sheet. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until set in the center and edges are lightly browned. For softer cookies, reduce baking time slightly. The cookies will still look a little moist in the center. Cool cookies 1 minute on the cookie sheets and then place them on wire cooling racks. (Store the cookies loosely covered at room temperature.)

For normal cookies

6. Drop 1-tablespoon blobs of dough onto the baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake 10 to 13 minutes, or until set in the center and edges are lightly browned. For softer cookies, reduce baking time slightly. The cookies will still look a little moist in the center. Cool cookies 1 minute on the cookie sheets and then place them on wire cooling racks. (Store the cookies loosely covered at room temperature.)

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Recipe Testers Reviews

Not only did the kids approve of these cookies, but I actually HAD to hide them. If I hadn’t, we would have had three girls with big tummy aches. These are very easy to make, and the girls had fun making them with me. We used half chocolate chips, half M&M’s. The best part is that my daughters are not usually fans of oats. I think next time I will actually double the recipe and freeze the dough, so to always have some available.

I just finished baking these, and what a fun cookie recipe it is. I was skeptical about grabbing a “very large bowl” until I mixed the butter and sugar in my extra-large stand mixer. Once the flour mixture was in, the mixing bowl was pretty full. Scraping the batter into a larger bowl gave me the room to add the oatmeal, corn flakes and candy. I chose M&M’s, mini peanut butter cups and chocolate chips. The cookies spread a bit while baking, and it is difficult to tell when the edges are brown with the chocolate-colored cookie, but 15 minutes was perfect for the monster size, and 12 worked for the smaller cookie. I wish I could say how many the recipe produced, but they were being devoured as they emerged from the oven. They’re crispy, crunchy, and lightly sweet. The corn flakes add a unique texture and pleasant flavor to the cookies. They’re a snap to make, and even easier to eat.

I made half a batch of this recipe. It has an even number of eggs, so halving it worked great. The dough came together very quickly and easily. I made the “normal”-sized cookies and baked them for about nine minutes, noting the author’s option for a softer cookie. The cookies spread thin and flat but remained chewy and soft after cooling. The oats and cornflakes add a little texture but don’t distract from the mellow chocolate flavor of this cookie. I added semisweet chips but would love to try the butterscotch next time for a little more contrast. I had six teenage boys here, and the cookies were gone quickly, so next time I may have to make the whole batch.

And Shelley, just to echo David, when I read about the introduction of Ms. Brown, I couldn’t resist. You’ll note that this recipe affords you options, so you can simply swap chunks of whatever chocolate makes you go weak in the knees for the candies that melt in your mouth…

Thank you so much for the great recipe! I made a half batch of these yesterday to bring into work and they were quickly devoured! They were a little crunchier than I was initially expecting but I think it actually allows you to appreciate the texture of the ingredients and the depth of chocolate flavor. I used a 1/3 c cocoa powder rather than a 1/4 c for a half batch (which nicely intensified the chocolate flavor), and used 1 1/2 c. of a combination of dark chocolate and milk chocolate chips (regular and mini). I got about 25 medium sized (3 inches across) cookies for a half batch.

I have made a lot of cookies in my day but I have to say that these were probably the best ever. I made these monsters on Saturday for a party and it was great how many the recipe yielded, I couldn’t even fit all of them in the largest tupperware in my house! I stuck to the recipe, didn’t make any changes, and used just the M&M’s, no choc chips or other fancy bits. The texture and flavor were incredible, however next time I need to remember to mix a bit more at the end because when I got to the bottom of the bowl (I used a huge spaghetti pot), there were a lot more oats and the last batch or 2 of cookies looked different and, well, oatier. I made the “jumbo” sized ones and there were still so many– more than enough to leave a plate full at home for my family in addition to the 30 or so I brought to the party. They were quite the crowd pleaser– after having one bite a friend told me they were the “top 5 cookies” he had ever had, and another guy who I do not know at all said that he wanted to marry me because of the cookies. So, if anyone’s looking for a proposal and a baker’s ego boost– make these ASAP!!

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